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Thursday, May 01, 2008

NaPoWriMo Summary and Thoughts--

Holy flash poetry, Batman, we're through.

I feel as if I'm been through a villanelle torture chamber. It was much harder than it looked (if it didn't look hard). It was tiring. It was tedious. It was a date with the page every single night even when I didn't want to write a poem.

BUT...I ended up with many more decent poems than I thought I would have. And I realized, if I push myself, they will come. Sometimes, I'll take the easy route (see poem about bowling ball), but other times (most of the time) I will suck it up and write the poem.

What was hard for me?

Posting drafts. That goes WAY beyond my comfort level. Drafts that were only so-so revised if that. Drafts that were just written then placed on my blog for everyone to see, that was a little strange and uncomfortable, I can even say vulnerable (like the say in that Eddie Murphy movie "I feel so vul-ner-able...") But a good vulnerable. And so many of you were so supportive and left notes and thank you for that.

Was it fun?

Sometimes. Mostly, it started to feel like a task. But a good task. Still though, it took me away from other things I'd rather be doing (or should be doing), but I learned so things about my writing life--like I CAN write in the morning. And how music helps me write. And I can pull a rabbit out of a hat when necessary.

Would I do it again?

Yes. And I wouldn't wait until National Poetry Month either. But it definitely will NOT be over the summer. Maybe in September or October. I did it in August last year, but I didn't push myself as much as I was in school.

Favorite line from one of your NaPoWriMo poems.Let me remind you, your grin is the only gun you ever need, my favorite murder with teeth.**though I stole much of this from a poet friend I email with- which is probably why it's my favorite.

What surprised you most about writing a poem a day?That many more came out better than I thought and that they were stronger than when I did this in August. Also, they became stronger the more I wrote--here's a secret, I actually started writing a poem a day with some poets by email on St. Patty's day. So, that warm up really helped.

Also, it became less painful to post these drafts as I as just THANKFUL to have something done. I definitely lowered my expectations when it was 10 p.m and I hadn't written my poem for the day.

Now that you’ve started the momentum, what’s next?***I'm going to clean the house! If anything falls to the backburner when I write, this is it.

Also, I'm submitting manuscript #2. And I'm ready for a vacation or some sunshine, or both.

Thanks for reading.

And I owe you a report on my Mary Oliver reading/talk. That will come next week, I promise. I mean, I'll have some time now!